Why Kolkata continues to rank as India’s safest city

KOLKATA: Despite RG Kar outrage and citywide protests, Kolkata has erstwhile again emerged arsenic India’s safest metro city, signaling the lowest complaint of cognisable offences per lakh colonisation among 19 Indian cities with populations exceeding 20 lakh, according to the latest National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) 2024 report.The latest figures reaffirm Kolkata’s presumption astatine the apical of the information rankings among cities, a favoritism the metropolis has present maintained for 5 consecutive years. The accomplishment comes contempt 2024 being marked by 1 of Bengal’s astir disturbing and politically charged incidents — the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital rape and execution lawsuit — which sparked weeks of protests, nationalist outrage and nationwide attention.The NCRB study showed Kolkata registered a cognisable offence complaint of 93.7 per lakh colonisation successful 2024.

Though the fig was higher than the 83.9 recorded successful 2023, it remained substantially little than the transgression rates reported by different metropolitan cities crossed India. Pune ranked 2nd with 367.5 cognisable offences per lakh population, followed by Coimbatore astatine 369.2 and Mumbai astatine 380.4.The nationalist mean for cognisable offences crossed the 19 metropolitan cities stood astatine 737.4 successful 2024, importantly higher than Kolkata’s figure.

The nationalist mean itself saw an betterment from 828 successful 2023, indicating a broader simplification successful municipality transgression rates crossed the country.

Kolkata’s semipermanent diminution successful transgression rateWhile the metropolis witnessed a flimsy summation successful transgression figures successful 2024 compared to the erstwhile year, the broader inclination implicit the past decennary points towards a dependable diminution successful transgression rates. NCRB information shows Kolkata had recorded 159.6 cognisable offences per lakh colonisation successful 2016. Since then, the city’s numbers person consistently declined.The transgression complaint dropped to 103.5 successful 2021 and further to 86.5 successful 2022 earlier touching 83.9 successful 2023 — the lowest successful caller years. Though the 2024 fig roseate marginally to 93.7, Kolkata inactive maintained a monolithic pb implicit each different large metro metropolis successful the country.The full fig of cognisable cases successful the metropolis besides reflects fluctuations implicit the years. Kolkata recorded 13,219 cognisable cases successful 2024, compared with 11,843 cases successful 2023.

The metropolis had registered 12,213 cases successful 2022 and 14,591 cases successful 2021.Senior constabulary officials said the wide inclination indicates sustained improvements successful policing and transgression prevention alternatively than a impermanent decline.Officers attributed the city’s show to stronger surveillance infrastructure, accrued nighttime patrolling, technological integration and much businesslike instrumentality enforcement systems.According to constabulary officials, focused attraction connected strengthening infrastructure, deploying manpower strategically and improving coordination among constabulary units helped trim transgression enactment successful respective delicate zones crossed the city.RG Kar lawsuit casts shadiness implicit information rankingThe NCRB findings person travel astatine a clip erstwhile Kolkata continues to grapple with the aftermath of the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital rape and execution case, which triggered wide protests and affectional demonstrations crossed Bengal.The incidental became a large governmental and societal flashpoint successful 2024, with citizens, doctors, students and civilian nine groups repeatedly taking to the streets demanding justness for the unfortunate and accountability from authorities.

The protests continued for weeks and drew nationalist attraction to women’s information and organization accountability.Against this backdrop, Kolkata retaining its presumption arsenic India’s safest metro metropolis has generated important debate. Critics reason that the NCRB rankings, which are based connected registered cognisable offences per lakh population, whitethorn not afloat seizure nationalist cognition of information oregon the affectional interaction of high-profile crimes.However, constabulary officials maintained that the rankings are based connected statistical indicators and comparative transgression information crossed metropolitan cities. They argued that isolated incidents, careless of their severity and nationalist impact, bash not needfully change the city’s wide transgression illustration erstwhile measured against nationalist averages.

How different metro cities performedThe NCRB study besides highlighted the crisp opposition betwixt Kolkata and respective different metropolitan cities successful presumption of transgression rates.

Delhi erstwhile again recorded the highest complaint of cognisable offences among metro cities astatine 1,824.5 offences per lakh colonisation successful 2024.Lucknow followed with a transgression complaint of 1,083.1, portion Kochi recorded 1,015.9 offences per lakh population. These figures were respective times higher than Kolkata’s 2024 transgression complaint of 93.7.Pune, which ranked 2nd down Kolkata, reported a transgression complaint of 367.5 per lakh colonisation — astir 4 times Kolkata’s figure.

Coimbatore recorded 369.2, portion Mumbai registered 380.4.The NCRB information for 2023 had shown akin trends. Kolkata recorded 83.9 cognisable offences per lakh colonisation that year, portion Hyderabad stood astatine 332.3, Pune astatine 337.1 and Mumbai astatine 355.4. Kochi had emerged arsenic the worst-performing metro successful 2023 with 3,192.4 offences per lakh population, followed by Delhi and Surat.Police officials and authorities authorities representatives person repeatedly utilized these figures to support Kolkata’s law-and-order concern against disapproval from governmental opponents.Violent crimes stay comparatively debased successful KolkataThe NCRB study for 2024 suggested that Kolkata continued to fare comparatively amended than respective different metro cities successful controlling convulsive crimes.The metropolis reported 12 rape cases successful 2024, compared with 10 cases successful 2023. There was 1 reported lawsuit of effort to rape during the year.In comparison, Delhi recorded 10,568 rape cases, portion Mumbai reported 411 specified cases during the aforesaid period.Kolkata besides reported 29 cases of rioting successful 2024. The fig remained little than Mumbai’s 153 cases, Bengaluru’s 58, Kozhikode’s 68 and Nagpur’s 60.Previous NCRB reports had besides indicated comparatively little convulsive transgression numbers successful Kolkata. In 2023, the metropolis recorded 43 murders compared with 34 successful 2022. However, the execution figures remained little than those reported successful 2021 and 2020, erstwhile the metropolis recorded 45 and 53 murders respectively.The metropolis besides recorded a diminution successful crimes against women successful 2023. NCRB information showed 1,746 cases were registered that year, compared with 1,890 successful 2022 and 1,783 successful 2021.

Kolkata’s complaint of crimes against women stood astatine 25.7 per lakh population, among the lowest successful the country.

Kolkata Police recognition exertion and surveillanceSenior constabulary officers attributed Kolkata’s continued ranking to extended usage of exertion and improvements successful policing strategies implicit the years.Officials said upgrades successful CCTV surveillance, data-based transgression monitoring systems, stronger postulation and nighttime policing, and faster coordination betwixt constabulary stations person contributed importantly to transgression prevention and detection.Police officials besides highlighted the relation of national practice and consciousness campaigns successful maintaining instrumentality and order. According to officers, regular monitoring of susceptible zones and deployment of further patrol teams successful high-footfall areas helped trim incidents of convulsive transgression and thoroughfare offences.Investigators besides pointed to accrued digitisation wrong the constabulary system, including improved information investigation and transgression tracking tools, which enabled quicker recognition of repetition offenders and faster effect to complaints.The authorities authorities has besides repeatedly emphasised its “zero tolerance” attack towards crime. Senior ministers person cited the NCRB figures arsenic grounds that Kolkata remains 1 of the safest metropolitan regions successful the state contempt disapproval from absorption parties implicit isolated incidents.Kolkata remains safest metro, but nationalist concerns persistKolkata’s continued dominance successful the NCRB rankings erstwhile again underlines the spread betwixt statistical indicators and nationalist cognition of safety.

While the metropolis has retained its presumption arsenic India’s safest metro for 5 consecutive years based connected cognisable offence rates, the events surrounding the 2024 RG Kar incidental besides exposed heavy nationalist anxieties implicit women’s safety, organization accountability and policing standards.For the Kolkata Police and the authorities administration, the latest study serves arsenic some an endorsement and a situation — an endorsement of the city’s semipermanent diminution successful transgression rates and policing infrastructure, and a situation to code increasing nationalist demands for safer institutions and stronger accountability mechanisms.As debates astir safety, transgression reporting and nationalist spot continue, Kolkata’s latest NCRB ranking presents a analyzable reality: a metropolis that remains statistically safer than its metropolitan counterparts portion simultaneously confronting aggravated scrutiny implicit immoderate of its astir disturbing crimes successful caller memory.